Plazas, Gardens, and Colonial Buildings – The Magic of San Luis Potosí

First on our travel agenda for the Magical Mexican Mountain Town Tour was San Luis Potosí. Founded roughly 30 years before Boston in 1592 around the Plaza Fundadores, the city sits at an altitude of 6,070 feet, and boasts a population of 736 thousand, and the entire metro area is just over a million. The old Centro Historico is organized around a series of plazas, public gardens, and pedestrian-only streets and walkways (indicated by the grayed-out streets on the map below). Beautiful colonial and beaux arts buildings abound. In fact, the Centro Historico reminds us a bit of Mérida, minus the sweltering climate. In 2010 the historic center of the city joined the ranks of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. And the city boasts one of the biggest Easter celebrations in Mexico, with festivals, food, free concerts, and the famous Procesión del Silencio. In addition, the city has a thriving economy, with an advantageous location nearly equidistant between Monterrey, Guadalajara, and Mexico City. All of these things made us want to travel to San Luis Potosí, and many of these things could make it an attractive place to live too.

Centro Historico, San Luis Potosí. Area within red is of most touristic interest. Click to enlarge.

Because we are incapable of planning any trip far in advance, combined with the fact that it was high season, we were able to book the Hotel Panorama for only one or two nights, early in Semana Santa. Fantastically located about a block from the Plaza Fundadores, the hotel was built in the 60’s, is quiet and well-maintained, and has a pool, though strangely it was closed during high season. But we’ve learned not to question such things in Mexico, and just let them be. For some reason, we don’t have a shot of the plaza itself, so we grabbed a view from Google Street View and tarted it up a bit, and airbrushed out the ubiquitous overhead wires. It was around this square that the city was founded. On the north side of the plaza can be found the Autonomous University of San Luis Potosí, which dates from 1652, and was founded by Jesuits, along with the also-Jesuit Chapel of Loreto, dating from the earliest years of the 1700’s. Compared to some of the other plazas with gardens and fountains, Fundadores can seem a bit bare, but it is truly the heart of the city.

Plaza Fundadores, Google Streetview

SLP’s main area of touristic interest, outlined in red above, is eminently walkable, though it might take you an hour to walk from the Plaza Fundadores to the end of the interesting part of the Calzada de Guadalupe. You certainly wouldn’t be bored along the way. One of the fun ways would be to turn right outside the hotel (indicated by a red dot) on Venustiano Carranza, and head toward the Plaza de las Armas, which is blocked to vehicular traffic.

Plaza de las Armas, San Luis Potosí

There you could enjoy one of Mexico’s most magnificent plazas, complete with the Metropolitan Cathedral, which dates from 1710, built in the Churrigueresque style of pink cantera limestone. In the center you’ll find a pink cantera limestone kiosk, where if you’re lucky, a band will be playing. Flanking this are gardens with trees and bushes. You’ll also see the Municipal Palace (essentially the City Hall), and the Government Palace, which houses various state offices. From the Plaza de las Armas, you can catch the double-decker Turibus, which is a good way to get an overview of the Centro Historico. We took the Turibus around in the late afternoon as the sun was setting, and it provided a marvelous view of many of the more interesting parts of the city. I’d recommend doing it early in your trip, as it’s an easy way to scout out things you’d like to see more closely later.

Cutting across the Plaza de las Armas, and then heading east along Francisco Madero, you will soon come to the City’s second large plaza, the Plaza del Carmen. This was the heart of the Easter celebrations, as you can see from the photo below. Not only is there another elegant 18th century church (Church of St. Carmen), but also the Temple of St. Carmen, the Museum of the Viceregency (Virreinato), and the Theatre of Peace. We enjoyed some margaritas on the second-floor balcony of a restaurant directly overlooking the plaza, from which the photo below was taken.

Plaza Del Carmen, Festival Underway

During our trip, the weather was perfect, about 75°. And speaking of weather, SLP has a remarkably pleasant climate, with summer highs in the 80’s, and winter lows in the upper 40’s and lower 50’s. And annual precipitation is about 15″, a bit less than San Francisco, so it’s a pretty dry place.

Directly behind the Plaza del Carmen, lies the Alameda, a large park, which we didn’t find terribly interesting compared to everything else. However next to the Alameda is the Train Museum, which we found highly interesting. Personally, I’m drawn to large machinery of all kinds, and trains fit the bill perfectly. Housed in a wonderful art-deco building that was once a station, the museum has nice displays of the history of railroading in Mexico, with bits of trains, old maps, stories of the rails, and other ephemera. But the museum also has a yard with old trains you can actually board. These date from late 19th century models, to cars that likely were built in the 50’s or 60’s. We had a lot of fun climbing around and taking pictures. Alas, I’m not yet ready to post a “selfie” online, so none of these will be seen in this post.

Museo del Ferrocarril, San Luis Potosí

Walking back from the Museo del Ferrocarril, crossing the Alameda, we encounter the Templo de San Agustín at the corner of José Morelos y Pavón and Avenida Universidad. This church was constructed between 1672 and 1682, with towers added later. I shot this from the second deck of the Turibus as we passed by.

Templo de San Agustín, San Luis Potosí

Walking back along Avenida Universidad, against trafic, we come across the Jardín de San Francisco, which has a beautiful fountain, and some life-sized bronze sculptures. It is also home to the Templo de San Francisco, and the National Presbyterian Church, an elegant Gothic-style building constructed in the early twentieth century.

Jardín de San Francisco

Farther down Avenida Universidad, we come to Plaza de Aranzazu, a lovely plaza in its own right, but also home to the Regional Potosino Museum. We enjoyed the museum, but what really caught our attention was the fact that this little plaza was home to “the scene,” with a lot of young people hanging out, some of whom were juggling flaming torches. Others were merely juggling bowling pins while hula-hooping. We enjoyed hanging out and absorbing the energy of these lively folk.

Fire Juggler in Plaza de Aranzazu, San Luis Potosí

Even without young people juggling fire, Plaza de Aranzazu is yet another beautiful plaza.

Plaza de Aranzazu at Dusk, San Luis Potosí

Finally, aside from museums, plazas, and gardens, the city’s streets are just fascinating, and there’s an interesting sight or set of buildings on virtually every block.

Charming Residential Street, San Luis Potosí, Ready for Easter

A lot of the streets are either original cobblestone, or dyed concrete cast in a cobblestone pattern. The overall effect is quite old world. Unfortunately, there are also some mid-twentieth century buildings mixed in too, but the overall effect is still pretty colonial.

San Luis Potosí Street in the Afternoon Light

But I personally am enchanted by elegant decay over modern convenience.

Elegant Decay in San Luis Potosí

Colonial House in San Luis Potosí, SLP. Mérida-like potential?

Though this post is by no means exhaustive, there are a few more things worth mentioning. First, the Calzada de Guadalupe to the south of the Plaza de las Armas is a grand boulevard with a garden in the center, filled with sculptures and “follies.” It is well worth walking. Second, in the Plaza del Carmen, there is the Museo Nacional de la Máscara, or the National Mask Museum. This is well worth seeing, not only for the collection, but for the building itself, which is an old mansion built in 1892 around a courtyard, and fully renovated on its 90th birthday.

Despite the length of this post, I’ve said nothing about the La Procesión del Silencio, the famous Silent March held to commemorate Good Friday, nor any details about the other festivities. So San Luis Potosí shall receive another post in this series as soon as I can recoup my energies and begin again.

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36 thoughts on “Plazas, Gardens, and Colonial Buildings – The Magic of San Luis Potosí”

How did I miss this post? Here it is almost Thursday and you wrote it on Monday!
Anyway, SLP is one of the wealthiest cities in Mexico! The largest hacienda in all of Mexico is located just outside SLP. The land of the hacienda reached all the way to the State of Durango at one time. It is called Hacienda Jaral de Berrios and has its own village surrounding it. It is an architectural wonder that I photographed along with two others one day. I’ve studied books about SLP and am astounded at the diversity of its agricultural as well as mineral wealth. I didn’t realize it is such a large city population wise.
Thanks for a very informative post!

Hi Barbara, Interesting. I’ll have to check out that hacienda the next time I’m down there. As you might have gathered from the other replies to comments, getting back to SLP is high on my list. Maybe we can swap an email about those books. The more I learn, the more interested I am. Thanks for commenting. Saludos!

I truly liked this post! So authoritative and enlightening, believe me. I’ve never, never been to San Luis Potosi and, just like William, I never considered it a travel destination, even though it’s closer to Monterrey than, Zacatecas, for example. I think San Luis Potosi needs some more promotion. Located in central Mexico, It would make a great meeting point for friends who live in different cities. I loved the pictures, and I made a mental note to visit San Luis Potosi soon (perhaps Semana Santa)… I would like to sit on a bench in Plaza de Armas, go to the Train Museum, and walk the streets of the center. About the pool being closed in high season, your comment “but we’ve learned not to question such things in Mexico” made me burst in laughter… it made me remember a few gringo friends absolutely bewildered at things like this — the expressions on their faces almost made me fall to the floor with laughter.

Hola Tino, thanks for the kind comments. I’m starting to be a bit surprised by the number of people who hadn’t even considered SLP a worthwhile destination. It got a good write up in my trusty Lonely Planet Guide to Mexico, but I guess people have to look for it even there. I think I’m going to have to apply for a position as Director of International Tourism for SLP, LOL. It would seem that I’m already moving the needle. Saludos, Kim

I recently read a post on one of the Morelia message boards. A woman wrote that she was coming to Puerto Vallarta, but she was devoting two weeks to see almost every colonial city in the highlands. She wanted suggestions on how to do that.

I thought of her as I read your excellent post. I have not been to San Luis Potosí, but it looks as if I should devote at least two weeks to do it justice. And I will. Perhaps this summer.

It really is a marvelous place. While I enjoyed the Easter festivities tremendously, I’d also like to return some time when the city is less choked with people. Especially the night of Good Friday, it was difficult to just walk along the sidewalk.

Thanks for the virtual tour, Kim, well done. That last pic: Yes, with that curbside appeal and assuming an interior with possibilities, it would be snapped up by a gut reno minded Merida gringo in a heartbeat.

You know, with all the wonderful old buildings that SLP has, I’m a bit surprised that it doesn’t seem to have hit the expat radar. In some sense, the cities are comparable in terms of size and history. But SLP’s climate is FAR superior to Mérida’s, and if you’d like to be able to drive back to the USA from time to time, the location is also superior. Thanks for reading. Saludos!

Hi Andean, thanks. I put a lot of work into the photos, and I took a ton. But now I’m wishing I had taken more. In fact, I’m realizing that we barely saw the area around Plaza Fundadores, which looks to be quite interesting with the University and all the pedestrian-only streets. Saludos.

You must be very excited to get back to Boston. Really, the weather is so much better now, it is no longer feels like -11 it’s now up to 30 degrees! And the snow is finally melting after that roaring rain storm last night that affected my cell service all morning. But it’s all good now, and the temperatures will be climbing up to the 40’s, at some point this week, or so I heard.
I read some carriers are letting people change flight plans for free because of all the delays! Maybe it’s a good time to fly south to SLP instead of the cold NE 🙂

Why does this somehow sound unconvincing? LOL…40’s are definitely better than single digits, never mind minus-somethings. I just looked at the National Weather Service forecast for Boston for tomorrow night. The temperature is supposed to be a steady 8°. Brrr!!!! Meanwhile, it’s been in the upper 60’s here, and everyone is praying for rain as it is the driest winter on record.

Excellent post, señor Kim. I have been to SLP just once, passing through, did not even spend the night. But I liked what I saw, and you have inspired me to go back. Spend the night even. Or two or three nights.

Train museum! Love them. My wife and I visited the train museum in Puebla a few months ago. There’s another in Galveston, Texas.

Honestly, in writing that post I realized how we had just skimmed the surface of SLP, and it made me want to go back and spend at least another week. Aside from our second hotel, we barely got outside the red line on the map, and didn’t even see everything there. If I were you, I’d seriously consider at least a week. And yes, you’d love the train museum. Saludos.

I’m up at 4:30 most days to get freelance projects done, but usually I go to blogs like yours to get the day off to a positive start. You really did the job today! I really can’t get enough of these colonial cities, especially ones that compare with my beloved Merida. Thanks for the tour!

Thanks, Lee. I’m sure you appreciate how much work that post was, LOL. Between tweaking photos, shrinking them down for web consumption, uploading them, and then deciding how to organize the “tour,” I spent most of yesterday. But it was a labor of love, and makes me want to go back to SLP again. Saludos!

Thanks for stopping by. Yes, one needs to overcome a certain amount of Northern European programming to properly appreciate elegant decay. But I’m firmly convinced that if someone immediately repainted everything in Mexico, they’d ruin a big part of the charm.

LOL!!! Too funny. Well, I’m not a freelancer, just on vacation. I’m never up this late at home. In fact, the main reason I live on the East Coast is because the West Coast time zone is too late for me to do what I need to do.

LOL… I have a secret fantasy of moving to Spain, and becoming a party boy. The work I do at home requires I be near a computer between 9:30 AM and 4:00 PM EST. If I were in Spain, that’d be 3:30 PM to 10:00 PM. Right after work, I could then just go out to dinner, then go clubbing, and sleep until noon every day. Oops! I guess the fantasy isn’t exactly secret any more, LOL… Cheers

¿Y porque no??? ¡Está a tu alcance…!
Why not try it out for the duration of a 3-month tourist visa? They are crying out for English teachers here, but if you don’t even need to find a local job, then you’re in a perfect position. Plus, due to the economic crisis, rental prices are plummeting. You might even learn some “proper” Spanish, including the many uses of the verb “coger”.

LOL, “many uses of the verb ‘coger.'” Does that verb generate the sly looks it generates in Mexico? Do you think I could rent a room somewhere for only 3 months? It’d be prohibitive to stay in a hotel. I still need to do my Mexican road trip first, though. And I’m not wild about the idea of teaching English; I certainly don’t need the money. But I wouldn’t mind a few, motivated students who’d be willing to come to me.

With so many empty properties, they are crying out for tenants, a short-term rental shouldn’t be hard to come by. I can give you some websites.

Also, it’s easy to find students if you want to give private lessons. Owing to the crisis, Spain is in an English-learning fever. I found a ton of intercambios on tusclasesparticulares.com, and several good friendships have developed from this. It’s been a great way of making contacts, especially for people like me who work from home.

Anyway, where there’s a will, there’s a way, and it sounds like you could quite easily pull it off if you wanted to.